The Girl Who Never Grew Up
by Fallen Darkly
Summary: Elizabeth Fairweather is a childish girl with her head always in the clouds. Almost thirteen years old, Elizabeth is being constantly reminded  and at times forced  to grow up... until one night a certain flying boy appears in her room.  Disney PeterxOC


Author's note: Okay so this isn't my first time writing a fanfic, but it IS my first time posting one on FF. This story is based on _Disney's_ Peter Pan & Peter Pan in Return to Never Land, because it was Disney's Peter Pan that I fell in love with ^^ So I tried my best to keep the story very Disney, which means that I will use very minimal violence (i.e. The "Punish Room" instead of writing about how teachers went about "taking care" of the children who would misbehave in class back in the day...). Constructive criticism is much appreciated, and I hope you all enjoy this Peter Pan fic~ :D

Disclaimer: I do not own Peter Pan or any of the characters and places that are associated with the movies and/or novels of the same name.

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><p><span>Chapter One<span>

[Here we are back in London. After the devastating war, Samuel Fairweather returned home to his wife; Lydia, and soon after she bore a child; Elizabeth. Elizabeth loved to play and laugh, but that alone wasn't enough for Mr. and Mrs. Fairweather, and it wasn't long before they began to place high expectations on their only child.

The higher their expectations grew so did Elizabeth's reluctance to grow up. Now, almost thirteen years old, Elizabeth is still striving to hold on to her childhood.

And so our story begins…]

"At long last! I finally have you in my midst, Peter Pan!" Captain Hook grinned evilly as he watched the crew tie up the meddlesome boy to a large anchor.

Peter scowled at the captain, and struggled to break free, but the ropes were too tight. What was worse; Tinker Bell was trapped under a bucket, which Smee was sitting on.

All hope seemed lost. Suddenly, a girl with long brown hair and piercing blue eyes came in sight.

"Not so fast, Hook!" she shouted, and unsheathed her sword. "It seems you've forgotten someone."

Hook sneered "I'll take care of you now!" he drew out his Epee.

Their duel was about to begin, when a familiar older woman appeared.

"_Elizabeth…_"

"Huh?" The girl stopped in her tracks.

"_Elizabeth…!_"

"What is Mrs. Fickle doing on _The Jolly Roger_…?" she thought to herself.

"Elizabeth! Wake up this instant!"

Elizabeth Fairweather awoke to a disappointing scene; she was out of her dream, and back in that boring classroom, face-to-face with that that _horrid_ teacher instead of Captain Hook. She didn't know which was worse…

"Off to Dream Land again, Miss Fairweather?" Mrs. Fickle rhetorically inquired. The other children in the class giggled.

"No…" Elizabeth murmured, "I was in _Never_ Land."

"Never Land" Mrs. Fickle scoffed, "well your head should spend less time in the clouds and more in your textbook."

The teacher began to walk away from Elizabeth's desk.

"I would have been off with my head had that been a real duel…" Elizabeth grumbled.

Mrs. Fickle turned back to her troublesome student. "Excuse me?"

"Never mind…"

"Are you through with interrupting my class, Miss Fairweather?"

The class giggled and whispered things like "She's in trouble now…" and "Oh, here it comes…"

"That depends, are you through with interrupting my duels?" Elizabeth shot back.

The children's giggles quickly turned into laughter. However, Elizabeth knew that they weren't laughing with her but at her.

"Silence!" Mrs. Fickle shouted and the laughter ceased immediately. "Well, it looks like you have earned yourself yet another trip to the punish room, Elizabeth, and possibly a suspension."

"I'm sure my mother will be _thrilled_…"

The bell rang, which meant that class was finally over.

"Its off to the punish room for you…" the older woman glared, "and for the rest of you, please remember to review pages forty-five to fifty-two for tomorrow's test. Class dismissed."

All of the children, including Elizabeth, rushed out of the room with haste.

"Hey, Elizabeth…" a girl from Elizabeth's class called out to her "did you your fight with Captain Crook?"

The other girls snickered.

Elizabeth abruptly turned around, "First of all, it's Captain _Hook_. Not Crook. Secondly, it was a _duel_ not a fight, and lastly, you don't 'enjoy' duels with villains—"

"Whatever, my friends and I have much better things to do than to listen to another one of your pathetic stories about your fights with pirates…" the four girls began to walk away with their noses in the air.

"It was a _duel_!" Elizabeth shouted back, not that she thought that they would actually listen.

"And so I told them again that is was a duel, but it's not like they would have actually listened to me anyway… those girly knobs" Elizabeth sipped her tea.

"Elizabeth," Wendy addressed "are you sure its alright for you to be here? Didn't you say that you've gotten another punishment?"

In times of boredom or trouble Elizabeth always found herself in her neighbor, Wendy's home. It was about a year ago that they had met and since then Elizabeth had always come over whenever she could to hear one of Wendy's stories. Wendy always had her door open to Elizabeth, and enjoyed her company. The two were like family, and Wendy always encouraged having imagination and being childish, unlike Elizabeth's mother and father… or Mrs. Fickle, and her tales of the adventures of Peter Pan and the Lost Boys always captured Elizabeth's interest.

"Yes, I was supposed to go to the punish room, but I didn't go this time. Besides, being punished for daydreaming in class is a load of bullocks" Elizabeth replied.

Wendy frowned. "I agree. However, in life if you wish to avoid things like that you must do what you are told."

"Like chores, for example?"

"Yes, like chores" Wendy half-smiled "you get it."

"I suppose so, but its not like I can go back now." Elizabeth took the last sip of her tea, "can I have some more Earl Grey?"

"Of course, with three lumps of sugar like always?"

"Yes please, and can you tell me one of your Peter Pan stories?" Elizabeth asked with a gleam in her eye.

"I don't know, I think you should be heading home soon. Your mother might get worried" Wendy handed the sugary tea to Elizabeth.

"Oh please, Miss Wendy! I promise to go straight home after the story is finished."

"Do you swear?" Wendy playfully prompted.

"I swear." Elizabeth crossed her heart with her free hand.

"Very well, I suppose we have time for the tale of when Peter and the Lost Boys stole Hook's treasure…" Wendy began.

Elizabeth listened attentively. She heard this story about five times but she never seemed to tire of it.

Just before Wendy could start there was a knock at the front door.

"Wendy got up from her seat. "Could that be Jane and Danny back from School…?"

She opened the door and found not her children, nor her husband, but Elizabeth's distressed mother.

"Oh dear…" Wendy murmured, "Good day, Mrs. Fairweather, are you—"

"Is my daughter here?"

"Why yes, she is—"

"Pardon the intrusion, Madam…" Mrs. Fairweather let herself in and made her way to the living area. "Elizabeth!" she shouted.

"Yes, mother?" Elizabeth put down her tea.

"I heard you've gotten another punishment today. That is the third time this week, and you skipped it." The agitated woman's eyes narrowed at her daughter.

"Uh—"

"And not only that, I find you here again when you should be at home doing your piano lessons or studying."

"But—"

"No buts! You are marching back home, young lady!" Mrs. Fairweather forcibly grabbed Elizabeth's arm.

All of this was bothering Wendy, she had never witnessed a mother being so forceful with her child.

"Excuse me, Mrs. Fairweather. If I may, you shouldn't be so hard on Elizabeth. Its not entirely her fault—"

"Of course it isn't her fault" Mrs. Fairweather interrupted, "all of this is your fault, Madam. For the past year my daughter has been behind in her piano lessons and studies, and now she's getting punished by her teachers at school all because you have been poisoning her mind with childish nonsense and pointless fantasies."

"Pardon me, Mrs. Fairweather, but I believe it's important for a child to dream and imagine while they still can. One's imagination is just as important as anything." Wendy argued.

"I have had enough of this! I shall no longer permit you to even say a word to my daughter. I think you have corrupted her with these ridiculous ideas quite enough."

"Mother, you can't do this!" Elizabeth cried.

"You've brought this upon yourself, Elizabeth. Now say goodbye to 'Miss Wendy'. We're going home." Mrs. Fairweather gave a cold stare.

Elizabeth yanked her arm out of her mother's tight grip and ran out the door, tears streaming out of her eyes.

Once she got home, Elizabeth barricaded herself in her bedroom. She knew that her little stunt had only earned her a night without supper, but she was far too upset to care.

"She can't do that…" Elizabeth whimpered.

She felt something warm and soft brush up against her leg. It was her cat, Figaro.

"Oh, Figaro…" she picked up her feline companion and held him in her arms, "sometimes I wish that Miss Wendy was my mother… she understands me and always tells me stories. Mother stopped telling me stories long ago…" she walked over to her bookshelf. Behind all of her mother's textbooks were storybooks that Wendy had given her. Everything from _Alice in Wonderland_ to _Sleeping Beauty_ was hidden behind History textbooks and Science journals.

"Now what escape shall I use today…" Elizabeth thought it would be appropriate to read the story of _Cinderella_, since she felt her current situation connected well with the beauty in the glass slippers.

Then, she overheard her mother talking with her father outside her door.

"Elizabeth received another punishment today," her mother began, "and she went to that woman's house. Can you believe I had to cancel yet another piano lesson today?"

Her father sighed. "If she continues to act like this we will have no choice but to send her to a boarding school…"

"I agree, our daughter is almost thirteen and she still acts like a child. It looks like from this point on we will have to be even harder on her."

Elizabeth cringed. She had to do something and fast. She glanced at the miniature piano in her room.

"Maybe if I play a few songs really well they'll forgive me."

Figaro meowed in response, as if he understood her plan.

"I could try playing a score at a higher level. Then mother and father will be impressed, and perhaps I can see Miss Wendy again…"

Elizabeth decided to attempt playingBach's _Piano Concerto No.1 in D minor_, a song from a much higher level than she was.

Hours went by, and Elizabeth just couldn't seem to get it right. She slammed her fist on the keys in frustration.

"Ugh! It's no use! There's no way I can learn such a difficult piece by myself, let alone in one night…" tears started to well up in the young girl's eyes.

Figaro meowed again, and seemed concerned for his master.

"It's no use, Figaro… I'm just not good enough…" Elizabeth said between sobs, "they will definitely send me to a boarding school now."

The small black and white cat purred against Elizabeth's side in an attempt to comfort her.

"Oh, Figaro…" she stroked the cat's soft fur, "you're the only friend I have left in this world…"

It was already half-past nine, and Elizabeth knew she had school tomorrow. So she changed out of her school uniform and into her white nightdress. "Well, goodnight, Figaro" she said as she crawled into bed and tried to forget about her disappointed parents and boarding school.

She slowly drifted off to sleep…

"Is she asleep?" An unfamiliar voice was heard, it sounded like a boy.

Some bell-like noises followed.

"Okay, good. Do you think we can carry it?"

Some more bell-like noises were heard.

Then there were sounds of strain, as if someone was trying to lift something heavy.

"Nggh! Gosh, this is a lot heavier than it looks. I guess we'll need some pixie dust after all."

"_Pixie Dust…?_" Elizabeth thought to herself. Her eyes fluttered open when she heard Figaro meowing. She then saw a silhouette by her mini piano and a small bright light.

"Shhh!" The silhouette hushed Figaro.

"Am I being robbed?" Elizabeth wondered. She didn't feel scared, although she was a little anxious.

Once her eyes adjusted to the darkness she realized that her piano was levitating off the floor… and the silhouette was a boy around her age, and the light was a…

"A fairy!" Elizabeth blurted, then quickly covered her mouth when she realized she said that out loud.

The boy turned, and noticed the girl sitting up on her bed now wide-awake.

"Uh-oh, looks like we've been spotted, Tink!" he spoke in a loud whisper.

The fairy flew around him, flustered, and made all kinds of jingling noises in response.

"Tink…?" Elizabeth murmured to herself. The name seemed awfully familiar.

"Leave? Now?" The boy inquired to his tiny friend.

"Tink… Tinker Bell…" Elizabeth recollected her thoughts, "Tinker Bell…?" she gasped once she realized whom the intruders were. "Tinker Bell!"

The two were about to make a quick escape back out the window when Elizabeth called out to them.

"Wait!" she said in a loud whisper, careful not to wake her family. It was enough for the boy to stop and climb back inside. The young brunette approached him.

"Are you…" she paused to get a good look at the boy, "are you… Peter Pan?"

The boy drew himself back a bit, surprised that this peculiar girl knew his name. Then he grinned.

"That's me~"

Elizabeth gasped. "Then… then you must be Tinker Bell" she addressed the fairy.

The fairy was just as surprised that the girl knew _her_ name.

"Yup, that's Tink." Peter confirmed, "and mind if I ask who _you_ are?"

"My name is Elizabeth, Elizabeth Fairweather" the shy girl replied, "its a pleasure to meet you both."

"A pleasure to meet you too, Elizabeth… but how do you know who we are?" Peter studied the girl, he was sure they had never met before.

"Oh! Well, you see I have heard many stories about you."

"Really?" the boy's expression perked up, "where'd you hear them from?"

"Miss—" Elizabeth decided to drop the formalities. "Uh, Wendy, and her daughter, Jane."

"Wendy and Jane? You mean you know them?" Peter showed great interest in that family.

Elizabeth couldn't help but smile, "yes, of course. I'm their neighbor after all."

"Oh right, their house is right over there…" Peter briefly glanced out the window and floated back over to Elizabeth, whom was amazed at the mere sight of Peter flying.

"_He truly is Peter Pan…_" she thought.

"Well, any friend of Wendy or Jane's is a friend of mine." The redhead smiled and shook Elizabeth's hand.

"I'm… a friend?" Elizabeth questioned, still dazzled by the boy.

"Of course you are!" he laughed a little.

Tinker Bell showed obvious signs of distaste.

"I'm glad…" Elizabeth smiled; Peter had to have been the first friend she made (besides Wendy, Jane and Figaro of course).

"And you're a friend of Tink's too. Right, Tinker Bell?" Peter asked the small flying girl.

The fairy turned away.

Elizabeth giggled. "Wendy and Jane weren't kidding when they said you were the jealous type."

Tinker Bell turned red with anger.

Peter laughed at his friend's reaction.

"And they also weren't lying when they said how beautiful you are" Elizabeth finished.

With those words, Tinker Bell calmed down. Maybe Elizabeth wouldn't be as annoying as those past girls she had to deal with.

Elizabeth noticed her piano still floating in the air.

"So… what were you two planning to do with my miniature piano?" she asked, gesturing to the floating instrument.

"Oh, that? We were gonna borrow it for a while" Peter admitted.

"Borrow?" Elizabeth gave a quizzical look, "What for?"

"Well…Tink and I would usually hear some pretty music whenever we came by to visit Wendy and Jane, but lately we haven't heard anything. So we came by to see why… and we figured the music came from that thing. So we were gonna borrow it."

"Without asking me?" Elizabeth inquired "_Wait… did he just call my music 'pretty'…?_"

"We were gonna give it back! I swear! We just didn't wanna wake you up…" Peter insisted.

"You _do_ realize a piano cannot produce music without someone to play it." Elizabeth raised a brow.

"Huh, that makes sense" Peter glanced back at the piano and rubbed his chin in thought.

Tinker Bell set the miniature instrument back down on the floor.

"Here's an example…" Elizabeth decided to play something simple; _Twinkle Twinkle Little Star_. She was thankful that both of her parents were heavy sleepers.

"So you're the one making pretty music!" Peter revealed.

"I wouldn't call my music 'pretty'…" Elizabeth said modestly.

"Well I like it" Peter grinned, which dazzled Elizabeth even more.

"Th-Thank you…" she blushed.

Figaro meowed to get Elizabeth's attention.

"What is it, Figaro?" The cat motioned to the clock hanging on the wall; it read a quarter-past three.

"_I shouldn't be up this late…_" Elizabeth thought, "_Mother will be mad if I can't wake up for school._"

"What kind of name is 'Figaro'?" Peter interrupted Elizabeth's train of thought; he held the cat in his arms.

"Its Italian. I named him after Geppetto's cat in _Pinocchio_." Elizabeth replied matter-of-factly.

"_Pinocchio_?" Peter cocked an eyebrow. Figaro was rubbing his face against the boy's chest; he seemed to really like him.

"You're not familiar with the story of _Pinocchio_?" the girl blinked.

"You know stories?" Peter's eyes sparkled with interest.

"I know plenty of stories, why?"

Peter grinned, "Tell me a story!" he and Tinker Bell flew over to Elizabeth's bed and got themselves comfortable.

"I would, but I can't," said Elizabeth with a sorrowful expression.

"Awwh, why not?"

"I have to sleep now."

"Are you tired?"

"Not really…"

"Then why do you have to sleep?"

"So I won't be tired in the morning."

"But why?"

"Because I have to go to school tomorrow."

"School? What's that?"

Elizabeth sighed, "It's a boring place where you have to sit with other children in a room and listen to a teacher teach you things…"

"Like what?"

"Mathematics, Proper Grammar, History, and other things."

"Why?"

"So I can be educated."

"Why?"

"Ugh, so I can… I can… well, I don't know! Because my mother and father want me to!"

"Why would your parents make you do boring things like that?"

"Doing boring things is just part of growing up, I suppose…" Elizabeth sat down on her mattress.

"What? No wonder grown-ups are so boring, it all makes sense now."

"There's more to being a 'grown-up' than just school, you know…" Elizabeth smirked.

"So you _want _to grow up?" Peter inquired.

"N… No…"

"Then why are you going to school and stuff?" Peter was confused.

Elizabeth thought about it, and she couldn't really think of a reason, except for:

"Because… it's what my parents think is best for me" she paused, "but, today I got into some trouble at school, and now they are thinking of sending me to boarding school."

"What's a boarding school?" Peter was worried.

"Its worse than a regular school. It's ten times more boring, and teachers are a lot more strict there." Elizabeth explained.

"And your mother and father wanna send you there?"

"Yes…"

"That's not right. If you don't wanna grow up you don't have to. Right, Tink?" the Fairy chimed in response.

"Well its not like I can do anything about it now…" Elizabeth sighed.

Peter looked at her with a sorrowful look, and then he looked at Tinker Bell. Then, he got an idea. Tinker Bell knew what he was thinking, and she did not approve of the idea of having to deal with another girl taking up her best friend's time. So she tried to reason with Peter, but to no avail.

"Hey, I got it!" Peter hovered in front of Elizabeth, "why don't you come with us to Never Land? That way you won't have to grow up, and you can tell stories to me and the Lost Boys!"

Tinker Bell started to protest, only to be ignored by Peter.

"What do you say?" Peter pressed.

Elizabeth was shocked by the idea. "Me… go to Never Land?" she thought aloud.

"Yeah! Its real easy!" Peter flew over to the window, "its easy if you fly, Never Land is just the second star on the right and—"

"Straight on 'till morning." Elizabeth finished, staring at the two bright stars in the night sky.

"Exactly" Peter glanced at his new friend, excited.

"I… I don't know…"

Suddenly, a knock on the door was heard.

"Elizabeth, I heard some noise. Is everything alright?" It was Mrs. Fairweather. "You better not be staying up late…"

"Oh no, its my mother!" Elizabeth warned in a loud whisper, "you have to go, now!"

"You too" Peter took her hand.

"What? No, I can't…"

"Elizabeth," the worried mother called out, "who are you talking to?"

"Sure you can. I'm not just gonna leave you here" Peter insisted, foot on the window pane.

At this point Tinker Bell didn't know which side to choose.

"But I…" The doorknob turned.

"That's it, I'm coming in…" Elizabeth's mother was losing her patience.

"Elizabeth" Peter called to the girl.

Elizabeth's heart stopped when she heard the boy call her name. His gaze didn't leave her.

"Trust me," he said.

Mrs. Fairweather came into the room, and gasped at the sight of the boy in green standing outside of her daughter's bedroom window.

"What on Earth!" she cried, "Elizabeth, get away from him!"

Elizabeth looked back at her mother, who held a threatening gaze.

"I'm sorry, mother. This is goodbye" she said before turning back to Peter, "I trust you."

Peter smiled and pulled Elizabeth on to his back. "Hang on tight!"

"Elizabeth Annelise Fairweather, you get back in your room this instant!" Mrs. Fairweather raged. Figaro nipped at her slipper in an attempt to distract her.

"Here we goooo~" Peter shouted and flew out the window with the Fairweather's only child.

"Elizabeth!" Mrs. Fairweather shrieked. Her voice was loud enough to be heard by Wendy next door, who looked out of her window.

She saw an all-too-familiar boy with (whom she assumed to be) Elizabeth flying away. The incredible sight made her smile.

"Well what do you know? I suppose it's her turn now" Wendy said to herself.

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><p>The second chapter is under way. Please leave questions, comments, andor constructive criticism in your reviews. Thanks for reading~ ^.^


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